Fashion styles tend to work in a circular manner, yet I imagine most would be happy if humanity makes an exception for the corduroy pant. Apart from the dreary colour spread spanning light beige, beige, medium beige and darker beige colour selection [I dunno, I've seen some pretty mean purple ones! – Editor], they were just plain unexciting. Which puts them at stark contrast to Swell’s new hazy IPA, Corduroy Lines, which is an ode to a dream surf day at the beach. Lines upon lines of perfect parallel swells rolling in all day; a never-ending ride of adrenaline and good times.

Aided by a heavy hit of Citra and Simcoe, Corduroy Lines is Swell’s juiciest IPA yet, with fresh orange citrus leading the way. It takes on an orange appearance a couple of shades lighter than the label, has a noticeably decent haze, and is light, creamy and fluffy – making ease of the 7 percent ABV. Some grapefruit works its way into the flavour spectrum, combining nicely with the fresh OJ vibes, and while there's a touch of sweetness, it's more fruit-driven than artificial, with a settling low bitterness to finish things off.

Matt King

Man can't survive on 7 percent ABV, fruit-laden monsters, much as we might like to; sometimes we need a stayer. Something to mix with a burst of activity or a long chill session in the outdoors. Enter Small Swell, a 3.4 percent ABV mid-strength with those longer sessions in mind: a refreshing ale to clean the salt from the mouth after a long day riding waves. Pale, Vienna, oats and wheat combine to provide a solid base so the Wai-iti and El Dorado can throw down some fruity vibes.

Light in body and pouring a straw yellow colour, Small Swell is refreshing and sharp, venturing away from the contemporary pale ale trends and opting for a stone fruit driven middy; peaches and apricot lead the way with just a squeeze of refreshing lime citrus. The body is light yet not watery and thin. The peaches dominate flavour wise, lifted by a biscuit and wheat base, with the lime following through late on the palate. Add in an easy bitterness and this is fridge or esky filler is ready for the heat of summer.

Matt King